Characteristics of the fieldfare shrub, how to plant and care in a personal plot, fieldfare in landscape design, reproduction, fight against diseases and pests, notes for gardeners, species.
Fieldfare (Sorbaria) belongs to the genus included in the Rosaceae family. Its natural distribution falls on Asian territories. The genus today includes a dozen different species. In our latitudes, it is customary to grow this representative of the flora due to the fact that the leaves unfold quite early, and the flowering is extended for a long time and is striking in its splendor. This includes the special unpretentiousness of the fieldfare.
| Family name | Pink |
| Growing period | Perennial |
| Vegetation form | Shrub |
| Breeds | Vegetatively (by layering, dividing the bush, lignified cuttings), in rare cases, seed |
| Open ground transplant terms | In the spring, until the sap flow began, in the autumn months, after the end of the leaf fall |
| Landing rules | Not less than one meter in group plantings, the size of the landing pit is 70x70 cm at a depth of 0.5 m |
| Priming | No special preferences, even clay and very moist will do |
| Soil acidity values, pH | 6, 5-7 (neutral) |
| Illumination level | Any: brightly lit location, partial shade, or heavy shade |
| Humidity level | Watering is essential, especially during hot and dry periods. |
| Special care rules | Top dressing 2-3 times per growing season and pruning |
| Height options | Up to 3 meters |
| Flowering period | From June throughout the month |
| Type of inflorescences or flowers | Panicle pyramidal inflorescences |
| Color of flowers | White or creamy white |
| Fruit type | Bare or pubescent leaflets |
| Fruit color | Light brown |
| The timing of fruit ripening | Since August |
| Decorative period | Spring-autumn |
| Application in landscape design | Single or group plantings, the formation of hedges, for strengthening slopes or landscaping any bodies of water |
| USDA zone | 4–8 |
The genus has its name, the term in Latin "Sorbus", which has a translation of "mountain ash". All because of the fact that the leaf plates are very reminiscent of the foliage of rowan ordinary. Already from the middle of the 18th century, fieldfare began to be actively cultivated in European countries.
All varieties are shrubs, the crown height of which does not exceed three meters. The deciduous mass falls off with the arrival of autumn. Since over time, a large amount of root growth appears next to the mother plant, such plantings become real thickets, characterized by high decorativeness. The root system is characterized by extensive branching, which helps to keep the bush on the sloping slopes.
Shoots of fieldfare are covered with yellowish-gray bark. Its branches have geniculate-sinuous outlines. Foliage, like mountain ash, has a complex shape and odd-pinnate division; there is a simple or double-serrated edge. The leaf contains up to 9-13 pairs of leaf lobes. The length of the leaves reaches 40 cm, and the leaf lobes themselves are 5-10 cm in length. The outlines of the leaflets are lanceolate. The color of the leaves is pale green, but it can take on cream and pinkish, orange or carmine red hues. At the same time, the greenish color scheme is inherent only in the summer season, and spring and autumn are characterized by more interesting shades of foliage. There are types of fieldfare, in which the leaves are bare on the back, but there are those where there is pubescence of whitish hairs covering the veins. The hairs are divided into simple and stellate. Interestingly, leaf lobes have a tendency to unfold in early spring and even the first frost does not damage them.
The flowers of the fieldfare begin to bloom from the first summer days, and this process stretches almost up to a month. The color of the flowers is pastel, the petals can take on a white or creamy-whitish shade. The flower may contain 20-30 stamens, and they are much longer than the petals themselves (almost twice). Because of this, it seems that the inflorescence is very fluffy. There are a lot of buds and they gather in large-sized panicle inflorescences with pyramidal outlines. When blooming, an odorous aroma spreads nearby, attracting pollinating insects.
When the plant reaches 2-3 years of age, the flowering process will occur annually. The fruits of the fieldfare are leaflets that begin to ripen in August. At the same time, depending on the species, leaflets have both a bare, rarely, and highly pubescent surface. Their color is light brown. Length can reach 5 mm. The leaflets are crowned with raised stalks. The shape of the fruit is cylindrical. Since they do not carry any decorative effect, the panicle inflorescences are cut off with the arrival of autumn.
The plant is not capricious and can adapt to any conditions, but in order for it to please for a long time with its appearance, it is worth adhering to the following rules. Differs in frost resistance and is able to respond normally to a change in the place of growth.
Fieldfare in landscape design: planting and care
- Landing place such bushes can be located both in an open and sunny area, so the field ash can successfully tolerate partial shade or even complete shading. It is recommended to plant it under the crowns of trees, which create an openwork partial shade. However, a thick shade will not interfere with both flowering and (albeit nondescript) fruiting.
- Priming it will not be difficult to pick up a field plant, since this representative of the flora will be good both in sandy and clayey waterlogged soil. But it is clear that it is best if the substrate is saturated with nutrients and provides access to the roots of moisture and air. The best quality results will be obtained when grown on well-drained and moist soil. The best choice for field grass would be medium-density loam, saturated with nutrients. The acidic reaction of such a substrate is preferable to be neutral (pH - 6, 5–7). You can make a soil mixture yourself from humus, sod soil and coarse sand, taking equal volumes of the components.
- Planting fieldfare it is carried out in the spring (the juices have not yet begun to move) or in the fall (immediately after the leaves fall, so that the plant has time to adapt to the cold weather). A planting hole must be dug so deep that an earthen seedling clod can enter it without destruction - the transshipment method is used. Usually these parameters correspond to 70x70 cm, and the depth is almost 50 cm. If a group planting is performed, then the distance between the seedlings should remain at least one meter. Since the fieldberry has the property of rapidly growing uncontrollably, it is recommended to overlay the edges of the pit with dense material (for example, slate or metal sheets). Despite the moisture-loving nature, a drainage layer should be laid on the bottom of the pit - small pieces of broken brick, expanded clay, gravel or pebbles. After that, a prepared soil mixture from the excavated soil mixed with leaf compost or humus is poured onto such a drainage. Only then can a fieldfare seedling be installed on top so that its root collar is 2–3 cm above the soil level of the plot. On the sides of the seedling, all free space is covered with substrate. A careful compaction of the soil is carried out so that there are no voids left and circles are formed that have the outlines of gentle funnels, with a slope towards the central part (towards the shrub) - this will serve as a guarantee that moisture will drain to the roots, and the field ash will always have a sufficient amount of it. After planting, the seedling is watered. For this, two buckets of water are used for each plant. They wait until all the moisture is absorbed by the soil, and mulch the root zone. Peat crumb or compost acts as a mulch. Such a layer will prevent the soil from drying out too quickly and will inhibit the growth of weeds.
- Watering when caring for fieldfare, it is recommended to be carried out regularly, and it should be abundant. This is especially true when the weather is dry and hot for a long time. If the bushes grow with insufficient moisture, then their decorative effect will greatly decrease, the foliage will lose its spectacular outlines, and the plant itself will be stunted.
- Fertilizers it is recommended to apply when growing fieldfare only if the plant was planted in a depleted substrate. Then you should use organic or complete mineral complexes (for example, Kemiru-Universal or Vermisol). Top dressing is applied twice during the growing season, portions should not be large. Fertilizers are not buried deep in the ground, but it is best to apply top dressing superficially. Organic matter can be humus, high moor peat or compost.
- Transfer plants are performed only when it is necessary to change its location or carry out a division. The last operation is described in the section "Reproduction of fieldfare by dividing the bush." If division is not required, then the extracted bush is simply planted in a pre-prepared pit with drainage and a substrate enriched with compost or humus. After planting, you need to compact the soil so that there are no voids in it, and then water it abundantly.
- Pruning is performed only in those cases when you want to form a crown of a fieldberry of a certain shape, but often such bushes do not need it. With the arrival of spring, it is necessary to carry out sanitary pruning, when it is necessary to remove all branches that are frozen or damaged by frost or pests during the winter. Also, shoots growing in the middle of the crown are cut, thickening it. Pruning is necessary so that the crown thinns a little, otherwise it will lead to a large number of old branches, as well as the formation of shoots characterized by thin outlines and weakness. At the same time, it was noticed that the haircut is easily tolerated by the fieldfare, even if it is performed radically. This procedure serves to rejuvenate the plant.
- General advice on care. Fieldfare is a fairly easy-to-care plant. So you should periodically loosen the soil, prevent it from drying out and regularly weed out weeds and unnecessary root shoots. All inflorescences that have begun to wilt are best removed so that the plant does not waste energy on ripening the fruits. In addition, such remaining inflorescences will lead to inhibition of flowering and a decrease in decorative appearance. After the end of flowering, it is recommended to cut off all the inflorescences on the bush, and when leaf fall ends, the leaves are raked up and burned (or removed from the site). Due to the fact that the plant is frost-resistant, it is not required to cover it for the winter. Even if some branches are frozen over, they will recover perfectly with the arrival of spring.
- The use of fieldfare in landscape design. The plant will look good in any corner of the garden, as a tapeworm or in group plantings. With the help of such bushes, it is possible to form a hedge. Since the root system is branched, such plantings can strengthen crumbling soil on slopes. Sorbaria looks beautiful on the banks of natural or artificial reservoirs.
Read also about the agrotechnology of planting and caring for stefanadra in the open field.
Fieldfare breeding rules
To get such an ornamental plant in your garden, both generative (using harvested seeds) and vegetative methods are used. However, it should be noted that the possibility of growing seedlings with the help of seeds is very small, therefore gardeners recommend staying on the second method, which includes dividing the bush, rooting lignified cuttings, layering or root suckers.
- Fieldfare propagation by dividing the bush. Over time, such a plant begins to grow strongly and its decorative effect decreases. Therefore, experienced gardeners recommend rejuvenating it by dividing it. The same method is suitable if you need to change the growing location of Sorbus. On spring or autumn days, the bush is dug around the perimeter and, using a garden fork, is removed from the ground. After that, division into parts is carried out so that each of the divisions has a sufficient number of shoots and developed root processes. All cuts are carefully sprinkled with crushed charcoal powder, and then the cuttings are planted in a previously prepared pit with a drainage layer at the bottom.
- Propagation of fieldfare by cuttings. To do this, in the spring, blanks are cut from the tops of the lignified branches of the plant. The length of the cuttings should vary in the range of 20-30 cm. After the lower cut is treated with a root stimulator (for example, Kornevin), planting is carried out in a seedling box filled with a peat-sand mixture (parts are taken of the same volume). During the rooting process, it is recommended that the soil is constantly slightly moistened. When it is noticed that the tops of the cuttings have begun to grow, this serves as a signal that the seedlings have taken root and with the arrival of autumn or next spring they can be transplanted into open ground.
- Fieldfare propagation by layering. In the spring months, a healthy and well-developed shoot is taken on the bush, which is closer to the soil surface. It is bent to the ground so that a pair of buds are found at the point of contact. A groove is dug in the substrate and a branch is laid there and immobility is ensured by pinning it to the ground. To do this, you can use a stiff wire or a regular hairpin. Then the groove is sprinkled at the point of contact with soil, and the subsequent care of the field ash layer will be the same as for the parent bush - irrigation and fertilization are carried out throughout the summer. The formation of root shoots will take a couple of weeks, and with the arrival of autumn, such a layer is separated from the mother plant and transplanted to a prepared place.
- Propagation of fieldfare by root shoots. Since over time, a large number of root suckers begin to form next to an adult bush, they can be used as seedlings. In spring or autumn, they are excavated and transplanted. The rules for the operation are the same as for dividing the bush.
See also tips for propagating pyracantha by seed and cuttings.
Recommendations for the fight against diseases and pests when growing fieldfare
Since such bushes are characterized by phytoncidal properties, diseases and pests try to bypass them, which cannot but please gardeners. However, with increased dryness and high temperatures during the growing season, it happens that fieldfare becomes a victim of spider mites and green aphids. These insects feed on juices that are sucked from the leaves of the plant. Because of this, the foliage turns yellow, withers quickly and flies around ahead of time. The whole bush begins to wither, on its leaves you can find sticky plaque, which is the waste products of pests, and a spider mite enmeshes the shoots with a translucent thin cobweb. The shoots, in turn, begin to deform and bend.
It is best, if the above symptoms are found, to urgently treat fieldfare with insecticidal preparations. Today, there are a lot of them in flower shops, an example is Karbofos, Aktara or Aktellik. Processing is carried out twice, the second time after 7-10 days. You can also use folk non-chemical preparations, for example, a solution on garlic gruel, onion peel or dandelion, which are diluted in a 1: 5 ratio in water.
Another problem with fieldfare is viral mosaic. By the way, aphids act as carriers. Therefore, the destruction of green small bugs must be carried out immediately. With a viral mosaic, marks of various shapes and sizes of a yellow, whitish or brown shade appear on the leaves. Such spots gradually merge completely, covering the leaves, and holes appear in their place. Unfortunately, there is no cure for today. Therefore, if such signs are found, the affected bush should be immediately removed and burned outside the site.
Read also how to deal with possible diseases and pests when growing bladderworm
Notes for gardeners about the fieldfare shrub
This variegated shrub has been known to gardeners since the middle of the 18th century. They love it for its rapid growth and simplicity, long, lush and fragrant flowering, as well as the fact that the leaves begin to unfold quite early, immediately after winter. On the territory of central Russia, preference is given to such varieties as field field (Sorbaria tomentosa), tree (Sorbaria arborea), Pallas (Sorbaria pallasii) and mountain ash (Sorbaria sorbifolia).
For a long time, folk healers knew about the field plant and used it to prepare medicines. Already in our time, during the study, it was revealed that the plant owes its properties to the presence of substances such as coumarins, phenylethylamine and a set of flavonoids. Astragalin and hyperoside, quercetin and tripolin are distinguished as the latter. On the basis of this representative of the flora, preparations are prepared that have a positive effect on the human body in the treatment of rheumatism. It is recommended to collect panicle inflorescences and prepare decoctions from them, which are poured into baths, water-based infusions. The prepared broth was prescribed for uterine bleeding or internal bleeding.
Fieldfare roots become the basis for drugs prescribed for diarrhea and for the treatment of tuberculosis. If we talk about the branches and deciduous mass, then the preparations made from them are used in the treatment of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, of a gynecological nature. It is possible to use them as an anthelmintic. When the often appearing angina torments, then from the discolored panicles-inflorescences you need to prepare herbal tea and gargle with it.
Fieldfare species
Felt fieldfare (Sorbaria tomentosa)
is a native of the eastern regions of Asia, preferring to grow on mountain slopes, but also occurs along river banks. Usually found at altitudes of 1800-2900 m. Bushes in height can vary from 3 m to 6 meters. Leaves are double-pinnate. The length of the leaf itself is 20–40 cm. The leaves are lanceolate, thin, 5–10 cm long, with double serrated edges. The leaf lobes are hairy on the back. There is practically no flowering in the species, but if it occurs, then panicle inflorescences are formed in the form of pyramids of creamy white flowers. The flowering period is June-August. The flower clusters are 20–45 cm long. The flowers are tiny, 5–7 mm in diameter, with rounded petals and protruding stamens.
The frost resistance of the species is low. The fruits are used by local people to treat asthma or lung infections. The British call the species Kashmir, false Spirea, Spiraea lindleyana, Spiraea sorbifolia, and the local population calls it Bakre Jar, Bhiloka, Kati, Kyans.
Mountain ashberry (Sorbaria arborea)
It also has a natural origin, namely East Asia. There he prefers dense forests, outskirts, slopes, sides of streams, roadsides; occurs at an altitude of 1600–3500 m above sea level. Shrub up to 6 m tall. The branches are young, yellow, yellowish-green and slightly stellate, pubescent at a young age, later dark red-brown and glabrous. The buds are purple-brown, ovate or oblong, glabrous or slightly pubescent at the apex. There are 13–17 leaflets, they grow opposite, sessile. Their shape varies from lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate. Leaflets, 4-9x1-3 cm, glabrous on both surfaces or slightly covered with sparse hairs or hairy-stellate. The base is broadly wedge-shaped, the edge is doubly serrated, the apex is pointed. During the flowering of tree ash, an inflorescence is formed - a panicle, with a size of 20-30x15-20 cm, composed of a large number of buds. Peduncle glabrous or slightly or densely pubescent. Bracts lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 4–5 mm in length, slightly pubescent, pointed apex. Flowers with a diameter of 6-7 mm; pedicel 2-3 mm. Sepals are oblong-ovate, glabrous, with obtuse apices. The petals are white, 3-4 mm long, the base is wedge-shaped, the apex is obtuse. Stamens 20-30 pieces, they are longer than petals. The flowering process is June-July, and the fruiting process is September-October.
Pallas' field ash (Sorbaria pallasii)
Distributed in the Far East, found in Transbaikalia. Prefers to grow on rocky slopes. Quite a spectacular bush, which in height can stretch up to 0, 6-1, 2 m. Through root growth, dense thickets can form over time. When the shoots are young, their bark has a brown tint, the surface can be bare or pubescent of thin branched hairs, yellowish in color. As the branches age, the bark begins to flake off. It is noteworthy that the leaves unfold much earlier than in other breeds. If frosts occur in spring, then some of the young foliage may suffer, but during the entire growing season, the deciduous mass is successfully restored.
The fox plates of Pallas fieldfare have an odd-pinnate shape. On the reverse side, the leaf lobes are characterized by pubescence of red hairs. Leaflets are linear-lanceolate. Their length is 15 cm. During flowering, panicle pyramidal inflorescences are formed at the tops of the branches. The inflorescences are composed of small flowers, the diameter of which does not exceed 15 mm. The color of the petals is milky or creamy white. When blooming, a fragrant aroma spreads that attracts insects. The plant is an excellent honey plant. With the arrival of autumn, fruits ripen, which are leaflets with a pubescent surface. The species is characterized by excellent frost resistance. They are used to form hedges or plantings in the form of curtains.
Mountain ashberry (Sorbaria sorbifolia)
is the most popular among gardeners. Usually, in natural conditions, it grows in Siberian territory, the Far East, a plant is not uncommon in the Japanese and Chinese expanses and in Korea. Prefers to settle on forest edges and coastal lands of waterways. The height of the shrub is 2 meters. The branches are characterized by a grayish brown bark. On them, with the arrival of spring, leaves unfold, reaching 20 cm in length. The foliage is sharp-serrated, with a pointed tip at the top, which differs from mountain ash. When the leaf lobes only unfold, their color is orange-pinkish, in the summer season they turn pale green, and by September they acquire a yellow or carmine-red color.
From the beginning of summer, the mountain ash plant begins a fragrant flowering, stretching until the end of August. In its process, panicle inflorescences in the shape of a pyramid are formed from numerous buds on the tops of the shoots. Flowers have cream or yellowish-whitish petals. The length of the inflorescences reaches 30 cm. There are so many stamens inside the corolla and they are much longer than the petals, which makes them seem very fluffy. When the bush reaches 2-3 years of age, then flowering will occur every year.
The fruits of mountain ash are represented by leaflets that have a pitcher-like shape and an intergrown structure. Application in landscape design is the same as for other types: group plantings and hedges. The variety is of interest Stelifila, characterized by leaves with pubescence of stellate hairs on the reverse side of a brown tint.
Fieldfare Sam (Sorbaria Sam)
is of particular interest due to its compact structure. Its branches are no more than 1, 2 m in height. The crown has rounded outlines. On the shoots, the bark is greenish-yellow, in the leaves they have a reddish or copper tint. Paniculate inflorescences are collected from snow-white flowers. In order for the color of the foliage to remain bright throughout the growing season, planting is carried out in an open, illuminated place from all sides.
Related article: Tips for planting and caring for bladderworms outdoors
Video about growing field ash on a personal plot:
